The Mid-Year Cutoff Is Back As WSL Announces 2022 Tour Schedule - Stab Mag

Live Now — Episode 3 Of Surf100 Challenge Series Presented By Pacifico

642 Views
Fans and fans! Photo: WSL

The Mid-Year Cutoff Is Back As WSL Announces 2022 Tour Schedule

Snapper axed, Surf Ranch axed.

news // Aug 4, 2021
Words by Ethan Davis
Reading Time: 2 minutes

The World Surf League (WSL) just made an announcement outlining changes to the 2022 WSL Tour Schedule and Strategy. The most significant changes regard the reinstatement of the mid-season cutoff where 36-men and 18-women fields are reduced to 24-men and 12-women fields at the end of the first five events in May.

The reasoning behind the midway cutoff is to ensure events can run within the most optimal swell cycles at locations like G-Land and J-Bay and to enable the stars of the sport meet head to head more frequently. According to a WSL source, they will still need a minimum of three days to run the events even with fewer competitors.

Technically speaking, the cut will take only the top-22 and top-10 surfers from the men and women’s tours respectively (the 24 and 12-person event fields will include 2 wildcards a side). This will serve also as the re-qualification line for the next season’s tour, so if you make the mid-year cut, you’re guaranteed to surf at least half of 2023’s CT.

One benefit of this system is that it allows CT surfers who weren’t going to requalify on the main tour have a legitimate crack at the Challenger Series, which will commence following the CT’s mid-year cut.

Further changes include the elimination of the Surf Ranch event, Lowers’ return to normal CT status, the addition of two new/old events at Sunset and G-Land, and the shift from CT to CS status (see below) for the Gold Coast and France events. The Rip Curl Finals, where the top 5 ranked surfers go head-to-head for the World Title, will run from September 7-18. The venue of the finals has yet to be announced, but we understand that they plan to change the location each year. 

Kirra for the CS? It could happen!

The CS (Challenger Series) will feature eight premium-ish venues in Sydney (AUS), Piha (NZL), Ballito (ZAF), Huntington Beach (USA), Pantin (ESP), Ericeira (PRT), Haleiwa (HAW) and Sunset Beach (HAW).

The Challenger Series (CS) will increase the number of 10,000-point events from six to eight for men and from two to four for women, offering equal prize money for men and women. This provides athletes more opportunities at the highest level to qualify for the Championship Tour. The Challenger Series events, which will exist as part of the overall Qualifying Series, will be a battleground for surfers to showcase their talents (and air revs) and qualify for the elite-level of competition.

2022 WSL Championship Tour Schedule:

  • Pipeline, Hawai’i – January 29 – February 10
  • Sunset, Hawai’i – February 11 – 23
  • Peniche, Portugal – March 3 – 13
  • Bells Beach, Australia – April 10 – 20
  • Margaret River, Western Australia – April 24 – May 4

      Mid-Season Cut – 36-man and 18-woman fields reduced to 24-man and 12-woman fields.

  • G-Land, Indonesia – May 28 – June 6
  • Trestles, USA – June 15 – 22
  • Saquarema, Brazil – June 27 – July 4
  • Jeffreys Bay, South Africa – July 9 – 18
  • Teahupo’o, Tahiti – August 11 – 21

      WSL Final 5 determined to battle for the undisputed men’s and women’s World Titles.

  • Rip Curl WSL Finals, location TBA – September 7 – 18

The 2022 WSL Challenger Series Schedule:

  • Gold Coast, Australia – May 7 – 15
  • Manly, Australia – May 17 – 24
  • Ballito, South Africa – July 20 – 27
  • Huntington Beach, USA – July 30 – August 7
  • Ericeira, Portugal – October 1 – 9
  • Landes, France – October 15 – 23
  • Piha, New Zealand – November 5 – 13
  • Haleiwa, Hawai’i – November 26 – December 7 

Comments

Comments are a Stab Premium feature. Gotta join to talk shop.

Already a member? Sign In

Want to join? Sign Up

Advertisement

Most Recent

Fiji Has Its First Professional Surfer, And He’s Unbelievable

16-year-old James Kusitino’s incomprehensible tube lounging leads to a deal with Former.

Jul 6, 2025

Laird Hamilton on The Limitations of Being a Purist, Invention vs. Ownership + Why He Never Had a Sticker Deal 

Untold stories from his How Surfers Get Paid interview.

Jul 4, 2025

Surf100 Challenge Series Presented By Pacifico: Episode 3

"The tribe has spoken," Dane Reynolds pronounced, and a surfer's torch was snuffed.

Jul 3, 2025

When Surfer’s Eye Is Actually Cancer

Erin Campbell's brutal journey from surf camp dreams to chemo drops, cryotherapy, and surgical horror.

Jul 3, 2025

Surfing’s 2025 Q2 Report

An assessment of surfing's vital signs throughout the second quarter of 2025.

Jul 2, 2025

What Actually Happened to Occy’s Mad Max Plunger Pool In Yeppoon?

Surf Lakes’ brass talks: internet hecklers, the unplugging of the plunger, and the Tom Curren…

Jul 2, 2025

Poor Goofy Foots 

Data shows that the world is stacked against goofs — they even make 15% less money than…

Jul 1, 2025

Britain’s First Wavepool Has Closed — What Really Happened?

Bankruptcy, social media hackings, debts unpaid — and yet, reopening looms.

Jul 1, 2025

Watch: Was Matt Meola’s Air Actually Better Than Hughie’s?

Watch the full Swatch Nines highlight reel and decide.

Jun 30, 2025

Houshmand Bludgeons Field To Win Second CT — Molly Picklum Tastes Blood, Snatches World #1 In Brazil

You can't argue with big surfing — that's Saquarema wrapped.

Jun 29, 2025

37 Years Old And World #1 — What’s Changed For Jordy Smith?

On rediscovering decades old surfboard templates, having a personality on the CT, and why this…

Jun 27, 2025

Tom Lowe Stars in ‘Let Me Live’

The wild, improbable ascent of Britain’s best big-wave surfer.

Jun 27, 2025

Saq Wrap: Italo Celebrates Mid-Heat, Griff Drops A Freestyle, Jordy + Yago Continue BBQing 20-YOs

Top seeds sow ruin, Final 5 starts to crystallize.

Jun 27, 2025

Surf100 Challenge Series Presented By Pacifico: Episode 2

Our seven surviving surfers confront an oddly large California beach break.

Jun 26, 2025

SEOTY: The ‘Once-In-A-Decade’ Caribbean Swell That Kelly Slater Passed On

Michael Dunphy stars in Jimmicane's 'Blue Veil'

Jun 25, 2025

Who Owns Bingin? Legal Fight To Stop Demolition Begins

Eviction notices served for all businesses built on state land.

Jun 25, 2025

Tony Hawk Just Named Hughie Vaughan’s Internet-Breaking Air Because… No One Else Can

89% of our IG poll respondents claimed the 'stale fish flipper' was the best air…

Jun 25, 2025

German Surfers: AN INVESTIGATION

Truth is the light by which the world can see. 

Jun 24, 2025
Advertisement